A NIGHT of new music staged by the Oxford Mail and featuring some of the city’s best-loved artists has been described as a “thrilling goodbye to the summer”.

A capacity crowd packed Oxford’s Jericho Tavern for the Autumn Jamboree on Saturday night – with all tickets selling out on the door.

Country-rockers The Dreaming Spires, folk-rock and roots band The Knights of Mentis and Oli Steadman of the folk-pop group Stornoway, delighted music-lovers at the Walton Street venue.

There were sets of new tunes and live favourites, culminating in a spectacular finale featuring 14 musicians, with all three acts joined by special guests Stuart Macbeth and Chuck Lloyd of the Original Rabbit Foot Spasm Band.

The night was headlined by The Dreaming Spires, featuring musician brothers Robin and Joe Bennett. The night saw them launch their new EP Darkness Before the Dawn and was also a farewell show for their drummer Jamie Dawson, who is moving to the west coast of America.

Robin said: “We were thrilled to wave goodbye to summer with this Autumn Jamboree celebrating the ‘rootsier’ side of Oxford music.

“For the finale we had all three bands and a couple of guests onstage – a total of 14 people, which may be a record for the Jericho Tavern, even continuing unplugged after the curfew with a great send-off for Jamie, who is off to California.”

Malachy O’Neill plays double bass with The Knights of Mentis, a nine-piece West Oxford band that also features accordion, guitar, fiddle, banjo, mandolin, double bass and a variety of more unusual instruments.

He said: “Oli and The Dreaming Spires were wonderful and such a pleasure to play with. That encore was a blast.”

Chuck Lloyd, who is originally from Arizona but now lives in Yarnton, sang the praises of performers and audience members.

He said: “It was thrilling to be onstage with everyone at the end. It was a chaotic jam, and I didn’t know what was going to happen next, but I loved it.

“There were no rehearsals, it was typically rock & roll. I was just told to bring my sax and be there on Saturday night. And I’m glad I did.

“The main reason I was there was to try out my Clarence Clemons-style tenor sax.

“He played with Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, who share a certain sound with The Dreaming Spires. It was a lot of fun, and I’ve never worked up so much of a sweat in my life.”

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Zulu Dawn: Oli Steadman

Oli Steadman, who also fronts the band Count Drachma, warmed up the crowd with gentle acoustic songs inspired by his native South Africa. He said: "What a fantastic evening! When Oxford's music brings together so many people in one space, it never fails to impress.

"There was a close-knit family of musicians and music-lovers. And we had everything from Xhosa folk through to Americana, via Clarence Clemons jazz solos during that finale."

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Roots manoeuvre: Knights of Mentis

Vincent Winter, from Didcot, was among those dancing at the front. He said: "I absolutely loved it. It was a great night of cheery Americana with a distinctively English vibe that you couln't help but smile and dance to." 

The event followed previous autumn showcases curated by the Oxford Mail and our sister paper The Oxford Times at the same venue, and at Oxford Castle and the Ashmolean Museum.

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Jam session: The Knights of Mentis join Dreaming Spires for a grand musical finale

The show was jointly organised by Stuart Macbeth and Oxford Mail features editor Tim Hughes. He said: “It was a spectacular show with some of my very favourite artists – which made it doubly exciting for me.

“I’m so grateful to them all for getting involved and playing their hearts out, and to Chuck and my technical expert Stuart, for adding to the best finale ever.

“Special thanks also go to the Jericho Tavern’s staff, and the lively audience for making it a great night that will surely go down in the history books.

“It was a perfect reminder of the vibrancy of the Oxford music scene, the incredible talent of our artists, and the warmth and energy of local people who packed out the venue.

“Without an amazing audience like Saturday's, gigs like this wouldn’t be possible.”

For more Oxford music news, click here...

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Singing Sin City: The Dreaming Spires

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All in the band: Packed stage for the finale

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Blown away: Sax and harmonica during the epic massed finale

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Mentis as anything: The Knights of Mentis pick up the pace

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Out of Africa: South Africa's Oli Steadman delights the crowd

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Taking the mic: Tim Hughes

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